Calls to pause vote on noisy vehicle exhaust plans

James Larbalestier feels banning modifying exhausts could create a car "class divide"

Hundreds of people have signed an online petition calling for Environment & Infrastructure (E&I) and Home Affairs to rethink a policy letter looking to tackle excessive noise from vehicles on the road.

The committees want to make it illegal to alter a vehicle's exhaust to make more noise, and to trial decibel limits.

Critics say the proposed plans over exhaust alteration were "unfair" and more allowances were required to permit "freedom of choice".

President of E&I Lindsay de Saumerez said excessively noisy vehicles were a "real issue" for the community and if the proposals were passed by the States, a trial would be undertaken to see if noise limits would work.

Supercars' louder exhausts

James Larbalestier, owner of JL Innovation, started the petition, which now has more than 500 signatures.

He said: "In Jersey and the UK, there are allowances for things such as the British standards for manufacturing exhaust systems so businesses can build an exhaust system within that standard... and allows people the freedom of choice."

He said he felt banning the alteration of an exhaust after manufacture could create a vehicle "class divide".

He said: "The majority of vehicles which have a louder exhaust from the factory, which is considered to be legal, are expensive supercars - the kind only certain people can afford."

He said it could be "creating a situation whereby we're saying: 'It's fine for you to have a loud exhaust as long as it comes on your big supercar'".

He would instead like to see a decibel limit instead, he said.

President of E&I Lindsay de Saumerez said excessively noisy vehicles were a "real issue" and it was "probably the issue that more people have contacted me about than anything else".

She said it was being looked at because, while the current law did make excessive noise illegal, there was no definition of it that, making it hard to prosecute.

If the proposals are passed by the States, a trail would be undertaken to see if noise limits would work.

De Saumerez said the trial would run concurrently with any change to legislation.

She said: "First off, we will understand how effective that change has been and also to understand whether we need to introduce further measures.

"The measure that we're particularly interested in exploring is if it is worth introducing decibel limits."